Assistant attorney general from East Haddam honored by DOJ

Published 12:00 am, Thursday, October 18, 2012

Assistant Attorney General Matthew Budzik is congratulated by state Attorney General George Jepsen for being honored by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Assistant Attorney General Matthew Budzik is congratulated by state Attorney General George Jepsen for being honored by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Assistant attorney general from East Haddam honored by DOJ

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HARTFORD >> An East Haddam resident who works for Attorney General George Jepsen has been recogized for negotiating a huge settlement the the nation's five largest mortgage servicers.

Jepsen said that Assistant Attorney General Matthew J. Budzik was recognized by the U.S. Department of Justice for helping to negotiate the $25 billion settlement with the mortgage servicers, a settlement that was announced earlier this year.

Budzik, the head of the Office of the Attorney General's Finance Department, received the Attorney General's Award for Distinguished Service from U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday.

"This recognition is well deserved. Matt Budzik worked countless hours over several years to help produce the settlement agreement with the nation's five largest mortgage servicers," Jepsen said in a prepared statement. "He, as well as Assistant Attorney General Joseph Chambers and other members of the finance department, provided tremendous help to me and to the people of Connecticut, particularly those who will benefit from the terms of this settlement agreement."

The recognition is the U.S. Attorney General's second-highest award for employee performance and it is a distinction usually reserved for Department of Justice employees. In this case, attorneys in eight states, including Budzik, were honored to recognize the federal-state teamwork and partnership that led to the unprecedented settlement.

The eight states comprised the executive committee of state attorneys general who worked with the Department of Justice and other federal agencies to reach the largest federal-state settlement agreement in history. In addition to Connecticut, the other states are Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Colorado, Florida, North Carolina and Washington.

Budzik joined the Office of the Attorney General in January 2005. He has been head of the finance department since November 2009.